Now, I am never quite sure what people expect to see when they visit our vineyards at flowering time. If they anticipate seeing a display of colour to rival the famous Chelsea flower show, then they should simply stay at home! Indeed, I remember my own reaction many many years ago, thinking to myself ‘but where are all the flowers?’ (saying nothing to the French vigneron who was showing me for fear of seeming ignorant).

I think that I have probably incorporated photos of the actual flowering on this blog in previous years, but quite honestly there’s not really that much to see, and it makes a rather boring header for the top of my page.

The important thing is that we have the right weather, and I’m pleased to report that the last week has been sensational – it would appear that the flowering for 2009 has passed off successfully. In the period leading up to this the weather had been cool and damp and we feared that we could have a poor flowering that would inevitably lead to uneven bunches. The French call this millerandage, but I am not sure if the Spanish actually have a word for it. When I looked it up in my LexiVin the translation was ‘granos muy pequeños’, which quite literally means very small berries…. hardly an apt description.

I have not posted for the last week or so, as I have been away in the UK. Now, I am not saying that the English are perfect drivers, but I was very soon reminded that I was ‘home’ again when after only 400 metres of my journey to work, the first would-be Fernando Alonso pulled out of a side road in front of me without even looking. Having said that, I am often shocked that many of the fast and aggressive drivers here in Spain are actually the young women! Sorry girls……